Kathryn Bigelow’s acclaimed ZERO DARK THIRTY (Sony) is off to a tremendous start in limited release, according to THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER.  The real-life drama about the CIA hunt for Osama bin-Laden, despite (or in part because of) being assailed by, among others, members of the US Senate for its depiction of US torture, was on track […]

The weekend before Christmas offers four wide releases and another fairly-wide release.  What a collection of underperformers.  The weekend should total a very uninspired $112 million for the top 12 films.  The 51st weekend of the year averages $172 million, and the last time this weekend started on December 21 (2007), the top 12 films […]

The Voice hasn’t run out of steam just yet. NBC:  The cycle finale of THE VOICE hit a 4.9, way up from last week and even more impressively, up half a point from last spring’s finale.  Even a rerun of the previous night’s episode at 8PM managed a 2.4, in 2d place for its hour.  […]

Viewers bid a fond XOXO to Gossip Girl. CW:  The final episode of GOSSIP GIRL earned the show its best rating of the season by a considerable margin, with a 0.8 (although it’s a sign of where the series ended up that this was still below a typical episode of Vampire Diaries or Arrow).  The […]

The Past Week: Total Box Office Volume All films in wide release playing between December 10 and December 16 grossed a solid $153 million, up 6% from the four-year average for the week and up 12% from the same week last year.  The past six weeks are still 18% above the four-year average and 24% […]

  With live coverage of football and President Obama’s address to the families of Newtown, last night’s ratings won’t really be clear until final numbers are released tomorrow.  What follows is a very preliminary account. CBS:  The SURVIVOR finale had the advantage of a huge (8.5) lead-in from an afternoon NFL overrun, and it’s currently […]

CBS’s second half of the Sunday NFL doubleheader did a terrific 17.0 HH rating in the metered markets (mostly Pittsburgh at Dallas between 4:30 and almost 8:00 pm). NBC’s Sunday Night Football at 8:30 pm averaged a 15.2 HH rating in the 56 metered markets (San Francisco at New England, briefly interrupted by President Obama’s […]

SEASON TO DATE through 12 weeks (through Sunday, December 16, 2012, including adjusted fast national ratings for the last three nights): NBC is averaging a 2.76 adult 18-49 rating in prime time (up 20% from the same period last year). CBS is in second place with a 2.37 (down 14%). FOX is in third place with […]